Many people in Hollywood and across southern Florida are planning holiday parties or are getting invitations for work parties, holiday festivities, family get-togethers, and other events. No matter what kind of invitations you are writing or receiving, there’s one thing that is a part of any great celebration: a failsafe plan for getting home safely.
Many parties, dinners, and events at this time of year include alcohol. While holiday parties can create lifelong memories, they can also increase the risk of drunk driving accidents in Hollywood and across southern Florida. If you’ll be attending any holiday events this year, make sure that you RSVP but also:
1) Have multiple ways of getting home safely.
If you take your car to an event and plan on taking a taxi home only to find that you didn’t bring enough money for a taxi or there is a long wait for a cab, you may be tempted to drive home anyway. If you have a designated driver, money for a cab, as well as other ways of getting home safely, you’re more likely to make the right decision for getting home safely.
2) Remove the temptation to drink and drive.
If you really want to avoid drunk driving, leave your car at home. Get a ride with a friend, take a taxi, or rely on public transportation to get to holiday events. This way, you will greatly reduce or eliminate the temptation to hop in your car because you feel fine after having a few drinks.
3) Talk to your children and friends about drunk driving.
Set a good example by not drinking and driving yourself, then talk to friends, family, and especially any new drivers in your family about the dangers of drunk driving. Offer to be a safe and sober drive home – no questions asked – at any time. You never know when this type of open-ended offer could save someone’s life.
4) Take distracted driving and fatigued driving as seriously as you take drunk driving.
Even if you’re sober throughout the holidays, you can still cause a serious accident if you drive when exhausted or if you drive when you’re distracted. Distracted and fatigued driving in Hollywood and South Florida claim lives every year. Whenever you get behind the wheel of your car, you should be prepared to give 100% of your focus to driving. If you can’t do that, take an alternate type of transportation home or wait until you can fully focus on the road.
5) Report any unsafe drivers.
If you see someone driving drunk or erratically, contact the police before the motorist has a chance to cause an accident.
6) Take buzzed driving seriously.
Many people find themselves arrested on DUI or DWI charges because they assume they’re fine to drive. It can be difficult to tell whether you are over the blood alcohol limit or not. You may feel fine but your mobility and response times may be compromised. It’s safest to avoid driving entirely if you have been drinking, even if you feel fine. The extra convenience of taking your car home is not worth the trauma of causing an accident.
If you find yourself injured by a drunk driver in Hollywood or anywhere in South Florida, contact Flaxman Law Group for a free accident consultation. Our attorneys believe that everyone who has been injured by a drunk driver deserves justice and should be allowed to seek compensation.